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Monday, October 3, 2016

Autumn Hometown Hunt: Apple Day

This is going to be my families first "real" Autumn! To clarify, we have lived in Florida the entirety of my children's lives and I have lived in the southern states the majority of my life. Since our relocation to Colorado, this will be our first time experiencing a true Autumn! The beautiful hues of the changing leaves, the crisp wind coming from the mountains, the REAL pumpkin farms and so much more. If you can't tell, I am extremely excited about all this and my family has some serious plans to make this the best Autumn we have ever experienced. We created an Colorado Autumn Bucket List and it is growing every day! Apple Day was not on our original list since I did not learn about it until after I created it but we had a blast!

I came across an event called Apple Day in Penrose, Colorado thanks to a friend and me and the boys decided we just had to go check it out!

Here is a quick summary from the Penrose Chamber of Commerce:

"Penrose, Colorado is called the Gateway to Fremont County. For over 75 years, the people of this hospitable community have proudly been welcoming tourists and locals alike to its annual Apple Day celebration. This event always takes place the first weekend in October and is greatly anticipated by all those who have attended in years past.

Long before Benjamin Franklin penned the phrase, “an apple a day, keeps the doctor away,” people have been enjoying and loving apples. They come in many varieties and colors, and are healthy, crunchy, sweet or tart, and economical.

This celebration commemorating Penrose’s apple crop lasts all day. Start out with breakfast in the park put on by the Volunteer Fire Department! The V.F.W. always has delicious fare, as does the Penrose Senior Citizen's Club and some of the local churches. There are so many events going on, that it is hard to list them all: a softball tournament; a fun run on the Penrose School health trail; plus lots of vendors selling crafts, art, and lots of good things to eat."

Little Man had a football game early Saturday morning so we were unable to arrive in Penrose until the Parades began!

What kind of apple parade would you have if you didn't have some Apple Dumplings?! I was literally overwhelmed by the amount of cuteness in this parade! There were Apple Dumplings and Apple Day Queen! Below are a few pictures I snapped of the elementary school floats:

After the elementary school portion of the parade, the town incorporated many different aspects into the parade. This included a flag presentation (the boys LOVED this because they are new Cub Scouts and are learning the importance of love of God and Country), tractors, fire trucks and even Santa made a debut on a motorcycle! Funny story, Goalie has been singing Santa Claus is Coming to Town for the past few weeks (I am not really sure why but he is my quirky kid that makes me smile) and when he saw Santa he said "Hi" to him then turned to me and said "OK, we can go now." Like he knew Santa would be there? and that was the only purpose of going to Apple Day. I laughed so hard. I hope he keeps that innocence for a very long time.

After the parade, the amazingly hospitable town give out a traditional FREE slice of apple pie. You can add a scoop of ice cream if you so desire for only $1! The boys weren't huge fans of the Apple Pie but I think that's my fault because it was lightly seasoned and I over season everything! My whole family just prefers being hit with full flavor. Although they wished it had more cinnamon and spices, they finished every bite. But really... who would waste Apple Pie?

In addition to lemonade, pie and an assortment of other goodies, there were also bags of all types of delicious apples you could purchased by the bag including Jonathan, Honey crisp and Gala!

I purchased some Lemonade slushies for us to enjoy with our delicious Apple Pie and we walked along the street and looked at the many vendors that came out for Apple Day. There were so many great arts and crafts on display and there was even a booth to get yourself registered to vote in the upcoming elections. I felt that the town did an amazing job creating such a fun family friendly event.

Because of the early football game, the boys and I were exhausted after a couple hours of the Apple Day festivities. I wish there would have been a few more kid type events in between the parade and after noon concerts too. The boys had the goal of staying for the evening fireworks but they were ready to go home around 2pm so they could eat and take a nap. This festival definitely got us in the Autumn spirit and we are ready to more Fall activities.

That was our first experience with Apple Day and it was a fantastic way to start the month of October! I can' wait to share more of the great activities and fall fun we have planned for this Autumn season so make sure to follow me on Facebook and Instagram to get sneak peaks on the fun to come!

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About Me

My name is Jessica and I am a Catholic mom and wife! I have two little boys in elementary school and active in sports. We are a family that loves finding new adventures! We are spicing up our religious lives and exploring ways to grow together. Health and fitness is another big interest and making new memories.

Disclosure: Pinot Noir and Prayers is an affiliate for providers of goods and services mentioned on this website. I may be compensated with a commission when you purchase after clicking on a link. I may also have received the product for free.

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